Quite a yarn

The original sign that hangs in the center of the Knitting Tree speaks to the long history the store has in the neighborhood. Although it’s been at its new location for less than a year, it first opened in 1969. And Jackie Shanahan, the third and current owner, saw some of that history.

Growing up nearby and raised by a mom who had a love of fabrics and knitting, Shanahan was no stranger to the yarn store down the street. In fact, her favorite childhood pastime was to play “store” using a big box of scraps and loose ends left over from her mom’s various projects.

But first Shanahan pursued a career in hair and makeup styling for celebrities — like Brett Favre. This came with a lot of downtime between takes, time that was easily filled with knitting.

Candice Wagener

Owners Mark and Jackie Shanahan were able to custom-design their new space.

In 2005, after working at the Knitting Tree part-time to support her “knitting habit,” as she puts it, Shanahan and her husband, Mark, bought the business.

Last September, the store relocated to retail space in a brand-new building in the next block, at the corner of Monroe and Knickerbocker streets. The landlord was looking for a retailer the community would identify with.

“This seemed like a perfect opportunity, like a dream come true,” says Shanahan, who was able to completely design the space to her requirements.

And the store seems equally like a dream come true for anyone interested in knitting. The walls are covered in skeins of yarn, mostly hand-dyed, with organic cotton and wools, bamboo fibers, silk, cashmere, alpaca, Arctic yak, New Zealand bushy-tailed possum, along with local yarns.

The store also stocks knitting accessories, books, magazines and pattern kits. The Knitting Tree has its own kit line called Patternology. Kits run $19-$150 and include the patterns and yarn needed to complete projects like sweaters, ponchos, cowls or scarves. Many of these items are shown completed, in-store, so that customers can test them out.

Classes, private lessons and project parties are another element. A recent baby shower involved each attendee knitting a square to become part of a full blanket.

Shanahan appreciates the sense of camaraderie among knitters. She knows her regular customer’s names, their favorite colors and the projects they’ve knit.

“That’s really fun for me,” she says. “That’s the most gratifying part.”